Air Force head coach Troy Calhoun leading the team out of the tunnel for a game this season was one of the images included in the 2013 Photos of the Year by Airman Magazine. To view the images, click on the link below.

The
Air Force track and field team is looking for volunteers to serve as officials
during its home competitions for the upcoming 2013-14 season.

Volunteers
serve in roles ranging from timing and recording to serving as umpires for
track events and judges for field events. For the 2013-14 season, Air Force
will host home meets on five Fridays and seven Saturdays, with most volunteer stints
lasting four-to-six hours (a complete list of home events can be found on the track
schedule page_

Training
and certification sessions will take place at 8:15 a.m., on Saturday, Dec. 14,
in the Falcon Athletic Center Auditorium. This session is not mandatory,
however, and new officials can be trained in several positions that do require
certification.

Any
individuals interested in volunteering as a competition official for home track
meets during the 2013 season should contact Rich Schornstein, Officials
Certification Chairman for USA Track and Field (kidz1023@comcast.net) or Jim Murphy, Air
Force's Coordinator of Officials (pat.and.jim@gmail.com)
by Monday, Dec. 9.

Take
advantage of this great opportunity to observe cadet-athletes in action and
learn and serve in the Olympic sport of track and field.

ESPN and the Wings of Blue worked together to have a GoPro camera mounted to the helmet of one of the team as they jumped into Falcon Stadium on Saturday before the Wyoming game. A link to the jump follows below.

Recent Air Force water polo alumnus David Ostrom, who is currently battling a rare form of cancer, was recently featured in the following article by Dan Albano of the Orange County Register. Ostrom, a 2010 Academy graduate, was an honorable mention All-WWPA honoree in his senior season and remains one of the top-five all-time saves leaders in program history.

MISSION VIEJO - David Ostrom doesn't need to look far in his room at Mission Hospital to be reminded of his decision that left some in Orange County's water polo community astonished.

On a counter near his bed sits a red- and yellow-colored water polo ball covered with signatures from Mission Viejo High's boys team.

"It's nice to wake up to that every single day," he said Saturday afternoon during a visit in the third-floor lounge at Mission Hospital.

"It just reminds you of the support out there and the team."

Ostrom, 25, served as a volunteer boys water polo coach at Mission Viejo, his alma mater, until complications from a rare form of potentially terminal cancer sent him to the hospital in late August.

And while Ostrom coached the Diablos for only a few weeks, his decision to give back to his sport and community during a time of personal difficulty left a lasting impression.

"I don't know if I have that willpower," said second-year Mission Viejo coach Jeff Rach, who recently delivered the signed ball to Ostrom on behalf of the water polo program.

"But for him to just want to give back and spread the love of the sport that he has, and what it did for him to get him to college and all that kind of stuff, I think it's unbelievable."

'KEEP PUSHING'

Water polo took Ostrom from Mission Viejo High to the Air Force Academy, where he played from 2006-09. After graduating from the academy, he joined the brotherhood and cockpits of military aviation.

He was stationed at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska when his promising ascent to becoming a reconnaissance pilot suddenly was grounded.

Ostrom had been an ultra-fit water polo goalie at Air Force and was still in good physical condition in December when he felt severe pain in his side.

After undergoing tests, he was diagnosed with adrenocortical carcinoma, an aggressive cancer that starts at the adrenal gland.

In May, a grim prognosis was delivered. During his trek home to Mission Viejo, a doctor at Travis Air Force Base near San Francisco told Ostrom that he could have six months to a year to live.

Ostrom read the prognosis in his paperwork and listened to the doctor but felt disbelief.

"You definitely don't believe it," he said. "I definitely don't think this is the end. ... Just don't listen to other people and keep pushing."

Ostrom did that once he returned to Mission Viejo for chemotherapy treatments, which began in June. With his career as an active first lieutenant in the Air Force seemingly over, he began thinking about water polo and how much he missed the sport.

He also thought about helping the program at Mission Viejo High, just a few minutes from his parents' home, where he now resides.

So on July 30, he sent a message to an ex-teammate at Mission Viejo via Facebook.

DEVINE INTERVENTION

The ex-classmate Ostrom turned to was John Devine.

Ostrom spotted Devine's name listed as an assistant coach on the school's water polo website. He sent Devine a message on Facebook with the hopes of landing a coaching gig with the Diablos.

As a senior in 2005, Ostrom helped the Mission Viejo water polo team end El Toro's 33-match winning streak in the South Coast League and claim the league title.

A gifted athlete, Ostrom also pitched on the varsity baseball team as a senior.

Devine gave Ostrom contact information for Rach, who quickly welcomed Ostrom and helped him get cleared to coach.

"I realized that I wanted to help people," Ostrom said. "I thought it would be a nice help to (teach players to) really get the basics down."

He first pushed through chemotherapy. The sessions were grueling. He experienced nausea and extreme fatigue afterward.

But in mid-August, about 10 days removed from his final chemotherapy session, he arrived for his first practice with the Diablos.

And just like the players, the former Air Force team MVP entered the pool with his brief-style swim suit, which hardly hid the trauma of his journey.

There was the patch on his chest to cover his intravenous chemotherapy port. There was a nearly 15-inch scar across his abdomen from a cancer surgery. And his hair was thinning from the chemotherapy.

Ostrom noted that his belly was bloated, too, but none of that mattered. He wanted the players to know the "full effect" of his story.

He was able to tread water briefly but mostly floated on a ball while training the goalies.

Rach stopped the first practice so Ostrom could talk to the players. Weeks later, they remained impressed.

"Instead of just spending his last couple months to live in bed-rest, he's giving back to a sport that really gave a lot back to him," senior captain Zach Gleason said.

"It takes a lot of courage for someone to do that. Even when he's not feeling 100 percent, just coming down, helping whenever he can, it means a lot to us."

"He's a good coach," said freshman goalie Harrison Kelley, who showed improvement after training with Ostrom. "It's really brave of him to help out with something he (loves), water polo."

A NEEDED ESCAPE

While Ostrom reached out to Mission Viejo, he also reaped his own benefits from his decision.

His venture into water polo coaching gave him a needed escape from thinking about the rigors of his fight against cancer. There are times when he loses his train of thought while talking or needs to lay on his back to rest.

But Ostrom said he felt good at his last water polo practice, which was Aug. 26. He was, however, admitted to the hospital later that day.

"It kind of gets your mind off the whole situation," he said of water polo. "When I came back (to Mission Viejo), I wanted to do something that I knew that I would enjoy."

Since being hospitalized, tests have shown that the cancer has spread and, Ostrom said, he's also battling a staph infection, liver disease and blood clots.

Despite the life-threatening circumstances, he remains surprisingly upbeat, to the point that he cracks jokes. He is well-supported by his family, friends and his loyal service dog, Sophie, a tiny, white Maltese Schnauzer.

He seems to encounter a steady flow of visitors and enjoys diversions such as the family's fantasy football league.

As for the next medical move, Ostrom's wife, Whitney, is helping to research clinical trials for cancer treatment. There's been talk of joining a clinical trial in Houston.

"Miracles can happen," said Ostrom's mother, Laura. "We have a lot of fight left in us."

Ostrom also has been buoyed by his fellow Air Force pilots. Bryan Holtz, one of Ostrom's friends from the academy, designed T-shirts with the phrase "#brostrong" across the chest as a fundraiser.

There are pictures on Facebook pages of the pilots wearing the shirts under their flight suits during stops in Afghanistan, Iraq and Kuwait.

Friends and family have raised more than $8,000 to send Ostrom and Whitney, his wife since May, on a trip.

"The support has been amazing," Ostrom said.

Ever the giver, though, he adds, "I feel bad that I haven't been able to reciprocate."

AN 'INSPIRATION'

Ostrom would like to return to coaching at Mission Viejo, though he said he likely won't be getting back in the water.

"I'm definitely going to go to a couple games when I get out of here," he said. "Try to help out as much as I can."

But no matter what happens, the Mission Viejo players and coaches already let Ostrom know what his decision to coach meant to them.

The Diablos placed the signed ball in a clear case with a small, silver plaque that reads, "Coach Ostrom 2013 Diablos' Season Inspiration."

Scott Irving, the associate head coach of the Air Force track and
field team, recently announced his retirement, effective September 30. As the
event coach of the Falcons' throwing team since 1999, Irving has been
instrumental in the team's rise at both the conference and national levels.

"I absolutely loved coaching
at the Academy," Irving said. "No other place holds a candle to USAFA ... it's
not even close. Everyone ... from the coaches and administrators to the
custodians and facility crew ... has helped make this program what it is today.
The cadets have been a real blessing and I will miss them all dearly."

During his tenure at Air Force, Irving has taught numerous classes in
the Academy's physical education department (2000-13), while coaching the pole
vault (2000-03), horizontal jumps (2004-06) and throwing events (2000-13). In
addition, he coordinated the strength and conditioning program for the entire
track and field program from 2000 to 2001.

Irving has also coordinated the officials that volunteer their time to
assist with all Air Force home competitions, as well as other meets held at the
Academy facilities, noting that "they constantly epitomize the ideal of going
above and beyond."

"Scott's been invaluable to this coaching staff for the past 14
seasons," head coach Ralph Lindeman said. "He began his coaching day right
after lunch, every day, by scheduling cadets to come down to work with him
individually, and then was one of the last to leave the field most every
evening. Scott truly gave all his throwers the gift of individualized
instruction, coaching and caring."

Under Irving's direction, Dana Pounds won back-to-back NCAA national
titles in the javelin throw (2005, 2006), while setting the Mountain West
record of 195'8"

The success of Pounds continued after her graduation, as Irving served
as her personal coach while she took part in the Air Force World Class Athlete
Program (WCAP). The champion of the 2007 U.S. National Outdoor Track and Field
Championships, Pounds was a member of the Team USA squad that competed at the
world championships that year and finished second at the 2008 U.S. Olympic
Trials.

He coached seven of the 10 NCAA Division I All-Americans for all
women's sports at the Academy, including Pounds (2004, 2005, 2006 javelin),
Olivia Korte (2006 discus) and Sara Neubauer (2009, 2010 discus; 2009 shot
put), while leading Neubauer to the shot put title at the U.S. Junior National
Outdoor Track and Field Championships in 2007.

On the men's side, Irving-coached athletes accounted for nine Mountain
West titles. Three Falcons combined for four javelin titles, including Joe
Bonner (2000), Tim Fritz (2002, 2003) and Matt Schwandt (2007), while Robert
Drye claimed back-to-back first-place finishes in the hammer throw (2011, 2012)
and Anthony Park swept the long jump titles at the 2004 indoor and outdoor
conference championship meets. In addition, David Lissy won the shot put at the
2008 MW Indoor Championships.

The throwers on the men's team have outscored all other teams at the
Mountain West Championships on three occasions (2008 indoors, 2001 outdoors,
2013 outdoors). The men tallied a record 55 points in the throwing events at
the MW Outdoor Championships, highlighted by seven all-MW selections (Brian
Ford - hammer, discus; James Chambers - discus, shot put; Garrett Griffin -
javelin; Grant Hamilton - shot put).

In 2011, Cole became the first member of the men's throwing program to
garner All-America recognition, receiving Honorable Mention status after
advancing to the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the discus throw.

During his tenure, 12 athletes have earned All-Academic Team honors
from the U.S. Track and Field and
Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), with Ford (2013) being the most
recent honoree for student-athletes that boast a strong GPA and advanced to the
NCAA Championship meet. In addition, Pounds was recognized as the Female
Collegiate Athlete of the Year by the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in 2006 and
Kent was awarded the Mountain West and NCAA Sportsmanship Awards in 2013.

Irving was twice recognized
as the NCAA Division I Women's Assistant Coach of the Year (2009, 2010) by the USTFCCCA.
The members of his 2007 and 2010 women's throwing teams were recognized by
Sportswomen of Colorado, Inc., while Irving received a Career Achievement Award
from the organization in 2013. In addition, he was honored as the Lifetime
Instructor of the Semester for Physical Education (fall 2003, fall 2012).

"It has indeed been an
incredible honor to coach with the likes of Ralph Lindeman, Juli Benson, Scott
Steffan, Allen Johnson, Mark Stanforth, Bob Graf and Ron White," Irving said.
"I would also like to thank all the volunteer coaches, too numerous to mention,
who have helped elevate the throwing events, the pole vault and entire
program."

"Personally, I'll miss Scott
as a friend, colleague, collaborator and confidant," Lindeman continued. "He's
someone that I've shared values with, as well as countless conversations
through the years in our efforts to not only optimize our athletes' results on
the field, but to develop leaders of character for the Air Force and our
country. While he can be proud of the accomplishments of his many athletes, I
think he can be most proud of that fact."

Irving voiced the same
sentiment, when he stated that "winning and records are tremendous, but the
bottom line is helping develop officers of character, who will protect and
defend our great nation."

Following his retirement, Irving and his wife, Allyn, will split their
time between Fort Garland, Colo., and Tucson, Ariz. The recipient of an art
history master's from Northwestern, Irving looks forward to pursuing his love
of art by creating bronze sculptures with a track and field emphasis.